Timothy J. Browne

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Tim Browne counsels clients nationwide in the areas of professional sports, media, entertainment, technology, and marketing and advertising, with a particular focus on the acquisition, protection and distribution of various forms of intellectual property.

Tim also advises companies on a broad range of subject matter, such as professional sports team acquisitions and expansion bids; corporate branding matters; rules and regulations of professional sports leagues and amateur associations; large-scale events and entertainment negotiations (including with local municipalities, venues, talent and vendors); joint ventures, franchise agreements, collaborations and strategic alliances; general corporate governance; non-disclosure agreements; digital and linear content licenses and distribution agreements; and sponsorship and advertising transactions.

Tim Browne counsels clients nationwide in the areas of professional sports, media, entertainment, technology, and marketing and advertising, with a particular focus on the acquisition, protection and distribution of various forms of intellectual property.

Tim also advises companies on a broad range of subject matter, such as professional sports team acquisitions and expansion bids; corporate branding matters; rules and regulations of professional sports leagues and amateur associations; large-scale events and entertainment negotiations (including with local municipalities, venues, talent and vendors); joint ventures, franchise agreements, collaborations and strategic alliances; general corporate governance; non-disclosure agreements; digital and linear content licenses and distribution agreements; and sponsorship and advertising transactions.

Prior to joining Bass, Berry & Sims, Tim served as an in-house attorney for 10 years at the league office of the National Basketball Association (NBA) and most recently was Vice President of Legal & Business Affairs (and Co-Head of the Media Legal Group). Tim was responsible for advising NBA and team clients alike on a variety of licensing and business matters in the areas of digital and social media (including for web-based and mobile fantasy games), content production and distribution, marketing and advertising (including in connection with promotions and sweepstakes), and events and entertainment. He was a key member of the negotiating team for one of the NBA’s most significant commercial initiatives: the 2014 renewal of the national media rights agreements between the NBA and each of Disney (i.e., ABC, ESPN) and Turner Broadcasting. Tim served as an integral part of the business affairs and legal team tasked with leading the NBA’s negotiations with regional sports networks (and advising NBA teams on their respective local media deals), YouTube, Apple, local and national audio distributors (including ESPN Radio, TuneIn and SiriusXM) and joint ventures and co-sales arrangements with partners such as Turner Broadcasting, the NCAA and USA Basketball. He also has broad experience in connection with NBA team media rights valuations and franchise matters, as well as the NFL’s leaguewide credit facilities for its teams (while an associate at Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP in New York City).

Advised Cracker Barrel in connection with its sponsorship agreements, talent acquisition and media partnerships during the 2017 and 2018 CMA Fests, the Country Music Association’s annual country music festival, located in Nashville, Tennessee

We advised Cracker Barrel in connection with its sponsorship agreements, talent acquisition and media partnerships during the 2017 and 2018...

Advised Cracker Barrel in connection with its sponsorship agreements, talent acquisition and media partnerships during the 2017 and 2018 CMA Fests, the Country Music Association’s annual country music festival, located in Nashville, Tennessee

We advised Cracker Barrel in connection with its sponsorship agreements, talent acquisition and media partnerships during the 2017 and 2018...

Advised NFL teams, such as the Minnesota Vikings, Cleveland Browns and Tennessee Titans, in connection with major sponsorship and technology agreements, registration and enforcement of trademarks and copyrights, website and mobile app privacy policies

We have advised NFL teams, such as the Minnesota Vikings, Cleveland Browns and Tennessee Titans, in connection with major sponsorship and...

Additional Experience

Representative Sports-Related Transactions and Experience:

Represented a Fortune-500 company in its sponsorship agreement negotiations and activation for 2018 CONMEBOL Libertadores (i.e., Copa Libertadores de América), the annual international soccer competition.

Represent major professional sports league in negotiations for various digital content, television and other media matters, including live programming and distribution agreements with distributors such as FOX and ESPN.

Provide advice and counsel for National Football League teams with respect to their website and mobile app privacy policies and data collection practices (including responses to potential data breaches), as well as legal compliance advice in connection with the clubs’ fan rewards marketing programs.

Represent a National Football League club in its negotiations on services and sponsorship agreements with major technology companies, such as Intel and Yinzcam.

Other Representative Transactions and Experience:

Represent start-up medical information media company in general corporate and intellectual property matters, including with respect to content distribution agreements and data collection policies and procedures.

Represented a leading events production agency in its events, vendor and entertainment/performance agreements in connection with the agency’s production and events services provided for high-profile events, conferences and conventions in the U.S. and Canada.